


Never Enough Fur

by Kiarawolf



Category: This Is Not Fiction (Webcomic)
Genre: M/M, unexplained cat transformations
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-18
Updated: 2015-11-18
Packaged: 2018-05-02 04:39:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,265
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5234456
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kiarawolf/pseuds/Kiarawolf
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Landon uses his cat-transformation powers to cheer Jules up.<br/>This started out as a laugh and then I couldn’t stop writing?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Never Enough Fur

**Author's Note:**

> Characters belong to the lovely Nicole Mannino <3  
> Story concept inspired by [this](http://davita-art.tumblr.com/post/131089177332/julian-and-a-mystery-cat-from-the-webcomic-this) drawing! :)

  Landon threw pencils at Jules’ window. Jules drew the curtains. Landon climbed the tree outside Jules’ room and hummed “I’m A Little Teapot”. Jules plugged his iPod into his speakers and turned the volume up to full.

  Landon returned to his room, grabbed a pen, and ripped a piece of paper out of his school notebook. _How to Apologise to Juls_ , he wrote, and then, in a list: _Fruit, Sydney Morgan, Cat._

  It didn’t take him long to ride to the supermarket, and then it was a simple matter of chopping and mixing. He took the finished fruit salad to the Drees’ front door, and Mrs Drees accepted it with a gushing thank-you.

  The next day, Landon slid in besides Jules in English. ‘Was there homework?’ He asked.

  Jules scowled. ‘N-no,’ he mumbled, but wouldn’t say anything more.

  At lunch, Landon sent a text: _Yo Louie, got anything you can give me?_

  The reply was a quick one: _SM merch posted express. And don’t call me that, it’s lou – ESS._  

  A trip to the post office turned up a nicely sized package. Landon had to squeeze in a shift at the hotdog stand before he had time to open it, but when he did he found four t-shirts inside, each printed with a different cover of Sydney Morgan’s books. He put the box in the fireplace and watched the return address smoke and disintegrate before heading on over to the Drees house for the second evening in a row.

  Mrs Drees promised that she’d pass the bundle of shirts onto Jules. But the next day, Jules walked into History wearing cat-print Leslie had bought him last Christmas.

  Landon intercepted him as they walked out of class. ‘Did you get my gifts?

  Jules tucked his head and blushed. ‘Maybe.’

  Now that they were closer, Landon thought he could see the hint of a purple collar (the one with Sydney Morgan’s second book) peeking out from beneath Jules’ green cat shirt. ‘Juls, I’m – ’

‘I don’t c-care,’ Jules started to say, but then there were tears instead of words and Jules covered his face with his fists.

  Landon reached forward, halfway, hovering… Jules ran.

  That night, the curtains were still drawn. Landon looked at his list. He crossed off _fruit_. He crossed off _Sydney Morgan_. He circled _cat_.

  It took him three attempts and almost five minutes to make the transformation stick. He’d never been very good at growing the tail – a docked stump was the best he could manage – and whiskers took extra concentration. A quick check in the bathroom mirror showed him that unless he could remove piercings with paws, he was going to have to start all over again. It should be quicker this time, so he stayed in the bathroom, watching his fur relax back into skin until he’d grossed himself out enough to have to turn away from the mirror. Reunited with his fingers, Landon unscrewed the bar in his eyebrow and the stud in his tongue, leaving the two bits of metal in his toothbrush cup (it seemed as good a place as any).

  This time, he successfully wrestled his length and limbs into his significantly smaller cat form in less than a minute. He regarded himself in the mirror, noting that his tail was an inch longer then he could usually make it – hopefully Jules wouldn’t notice. His fur was short and ginger, and his paws were far too big for a fully grown cat (which was, unfortunately, just how he is, not a failure of the transformation).

  Jules opened his window within moments of Landon starting to yow. ‘Straw!’ Jules’ smile was unguarded. Landon leapt lightly from the tree to Jules’ window ledge, and Jules reached for him immediately. ‘ _Straw,_ ’ Jules mumbled, burying his nose into the fur of Landon’s neck and rubbing his fingers over Landon’s ears.

  ‘Juls,’ Landon said, twitching his tail. Or at least he intended to speak – his cat form didn’t have the appropriate voice box, so what came out was something more like a meow.

  Jules laughed, and picked him up, and cradled him to his chest. ‘I’ve missed you, Straw,’ Jules smiled, and then he sat them both down on the floor and began petting Landon ears-to-tail. ‘It’s been a HORRIBLE week. First Mum made me babysit Leslie and she c-called me _selfish_ for not taking her to the Sydney Morgan and A-Adrian Paris talk show and I tried explaining about the _tickets_ but – ’ Landon rolled onto his back, offering up his stomach, which Jules immediately began to tickle ‘ – she’s still mad at me anyway. And then. Um. S-stuff happened with LANDON but I don’t really want to talk about it. He keeps being weird. I – I wish… Anyway, Isaiah’s been treating me like a _kid_ because of Landon being an IDIOT, and Dad tired to talk to me about my report card, but I – ’ Landon battered a paw at Jules’ nose. Jules giggled. ‘Hey,’ he laughed, and tried to catch Landon’s paw – but Landon evaded, and got a hit in on Jules’ ear. ‘Straw!’ Landon twisted onto his stomach and leapt away, just as Jules’ made a grab for his tail.

  Jules chased him around the room, almost cornering him under the desk (Landon darted between his legs at the last minute), and only giving in when he’s lost all breath and couldn’t chase a moment more. Collapsing on the bed, Jules resorted to cooing calls. ‘Straw, _Straaawberry_ , come here boy.’

   Landon padded over to the bed but didn’t leap up. Jules wouldn’t want him there, if he knew…

‘Please Straw,’ Jules patted the bed. Landon twitched an ear, but he leapt up. Instantly, Jules pulled him into a side-hug. ‘Will you stay this time? I know you probably want to g-go hunt _mice_ or whatever, but…’ Jules trailed off, and Landon nuzzled his muzzle into the crook of Jules’ neck.

‘You wouldn’t want _me_ staying,’ he tried to explain, but it sounded more like enthusiastic purring.

  The next day, Landon rushed his god-fathering work in order leave school early. It was worth it when Jules came home, saw Landon lounged on his windowsill, and immediately gifted him with a huge grin. ‘You came two days in a row,’ Jules wondered as he lifted the window, and Landon purred as he rubbed up against Jules’ arm.

  They played with a Pikachu plush that Jules had got during their Pokemon phase. Jules threw it and Landon fetched it – strange behaviour for a cat, but Jules didn’t seem to care.

  Later, Jules rubbed Landon’s tummy while Landon stretched his paws. ‘Stay,’ Jules implored, ‘please Straw, stay.’

  But Landon left.

  The next day, before Landon had even gotten the chance to check what t-shirt Jules was wearing, Isaiah corned him by his locker. ‘Look, Landon, I know you’re… well…’

‘Irresistible?’

  Isaiah took a deep breath. ‘Listen, you really hurt Jules.’

  Landon swallowed.

‘I think it’s better if you just… I mean, I know what you’re doing, with the shirts and the lunches every day and the drawings in class, but just… consider just leaving him alone, y’know?’

  Landon thought about Jules’ fingers stroking his fur. He nodded. ‘It’s okay, I know jealousy can be hard to deal with. I’ll make your lunch tomorrow as well,’ Landon winked, and then he fled.

  He had to work late at the ice cream store that night, and by the time he made it home, he was tired enough to collapse directly into bed. Sleep, however, wasn’t as co-operative.

  He stared at the ceiling until he heard movement next door – the sound of a window opening, and a quiet voice asking: ‘Straw?’ – at which point he rolled over, pulled up the blankets, and clenched his jaw until the heat behind his eyes faded away.

  Eventually the sun came up, and Landon felt justified in getting up. He worked in the kitchen until it was an appropriate hour, and then he boxed everything up, grabbed his backpack, and sat himself down on the steps of the Drees household.

  Somehow, the hard wood porch and the steady morning sun was comfortable enough to give him the sleep that his soft bed and dark room had failed to deliver – he woke to Jules standing over him, arms crossed and brows furrowed.

‘Morning, sunshine,’ Landon grinned.

‘G-go away,’ Jules said. ‘I don’t want to talk to you.’

‘You want to make out instead?’ Landon jiggled his eyebrows.

  Jules raised his chin. ‘You’re not _listening_ to me! I don’t want ANYTHING to do with y-you. So go _AWAY_!’

  Landon used the railing to help him stand up. He thought about Jules smiling when “Straw” came to his window. He couldn’t make himself look at whatever expression Jules was wearing now – he’s got the smile, and that’s enough. ‘O-okay,’ he managed to say.

  At school, he handed his cooking to Selby. ‘Give this to a kid without a lunch,’ he said, and she patted his arm.

‘It’ll be alright,’ she promised. ‘You’ve just got to let him cool down.’

  He shrugged. ‘I know. No one can resist my charm for too long.’

  She looked at him with soft eyes, but he pretended not to notice.

  For a week, he kept the promise.

  He didn’t talk to Jules. He didn’t try and sit next to him in class. He didn’t ask about homework. He didn’t deliver him lunch. He didn’t draw him pictures. He didn’t tap on his window. He worked, and he did homework, and he glared at his guitar, and he wrestled with sleep.

  One week, and then he was woken in the middle of the night by muffled sobbing, and he shifted down into ginger fur and yowled outside Jules’ window. And the sniffling stopped, and Jules came padding across the room to lift the latch, and Landon let himself be picked up and carried into bed. Jules drew the blankets over them, and turned off the lights, and pushed his nose into the back of Landon’s neck.

  He woke slowly, languidly. There was sun in the room and Jules was laying alongside him, one hand turning the pages of a book and the other stroking long lines down Landon’s fur. Landon rolled over, presenting his tummy, and let himself be petted back to sleep.

  He left after lunch, because he’d barely shown up to work so far this week and if he missed another shift… but he came straight back, and napped in the slowly moving patch of sun on Jules’ floor. When Jules finished studying, they played fetch, and then Jules pulled out a book.

‘I’m sorry,’ Landon mewed, but Jules smiled.

‘You’re the best cat, Straw.’

‘I’m sorry,’ Landon tired again, but Jules turned back to the book and begun to read aloud.

‘Mary felt the horse moving between her thighs, powerful muscles shifting as they galloped to the rescue of her kidnapped lover Sir Justin, the White Knight…’

  Landon closed his eyes.

  The next day was a Monday, and there was godfathering to do, so Landon left before the sun arrived. In first period English, Jules took the seat next to him.

‘Hey cuddlepot,’ Landon smiled. Jules buried his head in his arms, but Landon could see the evidence of a blush radiating from the tips of his ears.

  That evening, Landon played guitar with his window open, letting the slow strumming spill into the night. Eventually, he put the pick down and picked up a piece of paper – _How to Apologise to Juls_ , it was titled. Landon changed the circle around _cat_ into a heart, and then added a fourth item: _apologise_.

  It had been a while since he’d climbed this tree with fingers rather than claws, and the distances between branches seemed laughably small. He tapped on the window rather than scratched, but Jules came over all the same. ‘What do YOU want,’ he mumbled.

‘I, uh – I want to apologise.’

  Jules hesitated. ‘F-fine.’ He turned and scurried back across the room, throwing himself face-down on the bed – but he left the window open, and Landon maneuvered himself through.

  He flopped down next to Jules, laying on his back and clasping his hands over his chest. Next to him, Jules pressed his face deeper into his pillow and fisted the sheets tighter.

  Landon closed his eyes. ‘I’m sorry. For pretending I didn’t know who Sydney Morgan was. I just wanted an excuse to hang out again. I’ve never… I’m not very good at staying away from you. But if you – I mean… I’m sorry.’

  Jules’ words were muffled by the pillow. ‘You – um, you… it wasn’t? You weren’t just….?’

  Landon rolled onto his side and tugged at Jules’ hair. ‘Come on, I wanna see that pretty face.’

  Jules shifted his head to the side, furious expression peeking out from beneath a cloud of hair and from under the frame of wet eyelashes. ‘That! Is everything just THAT to you?’

‘Huh?’

‘A game! Teasing! You must’ve just been LAUGHING at me the whole time, always joking around and - ’

‘No, Jules, that’s not…’

‘I feel like y-you don’t take me _seriously_ ,’ Jules mumbled.

‘I do, Juls I swear, I’m just shit at… shit at everything.’

  Jules picked at the threads of the blanket. ‘You’re um, you’re pretty good at – at being a cat.’

‘Damn.’

  Jules giggled. ‘Except, you should really remember to take your piercings out more often.’

‘Ah.’

‘And maybe pretend not to understand words.’

‘Yes.’

‘And… and stay more often!’

‘Okay.’

  That night, Landon fell asleep to Jules petting his hair. It wasn’t all that different to fur.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! It would make my day to hear your thoughts :)


End file.
